Elegant Yet Edgy Houston Home

Dressed impeccably in suit and tie with neatly coiffed white hair, Jim Stein looks every bit the banking executive that he is. But then there’s the Led Zeppelin-, Stevie Ray Vaughan-, Beatles-loving Jim who cranks up the stereo so loud it rattles the walls of his elegant Houston patio home.

Interior designer Julie Dodson tuned into those diverse personality qualities and quirks while helping Jim plan and furnish his new 5,800-square-foot home. “Jim is just so cool,” says Dodson. “He’s as structured as you expect a banker to be, but he loves classic rock. He has a vinyl collection that’s insane.”

Sunlight pours through the metal- and-glass entry doors, illuminating the white marble and gray granite floor. “Frost Marble Cylinder” lamps from AREA-Houston are trimmed in copper and have double shades; an inner fabric is ringed by a translucent material.

He’s also an eighth-generation Texan and a proud and loving father of three daughters. The oldest, Jamie Safier, is married; the two younger girls, Jordan, 13, and Jade, 11, live with him part-time. “They’re the cutest kids ever!” he boasts.

The wood “Lina” console table is from Bliss Studio. The mirror is an antique.

Jim bought the three-level stucco home midway through construction, allowing him and Dodson to alter the floor plans and upgrade materials and finishes. One of the first improvements was transforming a first-level den into a music room, equipped with a high-performance, house-shaking sound system. (“There have been some great parties there. Jim loves to crank up the music,” Dodson laughs.)

The doorway into the room was widened to better connect it with the rest of the house and was outfitted with barn-style sliding doors—a nod to Jim’s Texas ranch upbringing. French antique wood doors with well-worn paint hang from the track system, creating an impressive entry from the central foyer. “I wanted something more elegant than typical barn doors,” Dodson says.

Another upgrade was finishing the walls of the music room with wood paneling painted a soft, enveloping gray. Sharing is part of the joy of music, so the room is furnished for entertaining with a sink-in sofa covered in an indoor-outdoor fabric and two bergères upholstered in leather. A trio of open cubes wrapped in linen and trimmed with nailheads functions as a cocktail table. “I lean toward French styling in my interiors, but this needed to be a place where a man would feel comfortable, where he could sit, relax, and listen to music and have a glass of wine,” Dodson says.

Classic-rock album covers are framed by paneled walls painted in Sherwin-Williams’ “Pewter Cast.” Cube tables are from Century.

An additional mid-construction adjustment was converting a 10x14-foot storage space adjacent to the music room into a fully insulated and climate-controlled wine room. In the original floor plans, the room was accessed from a single door in the back of the garage. That entrance was eliminated and a glass wall with a hinged glass door now separates the music and wine rooms. Reclaimed barn wood was used for shelving and wine storage bins, adding a rustic, down-home Texas vibe.

While Jim approved Dodson’s furnishing choices, he was most involved when it came to art—particularly tributes to his rock icons. Adorning the wall above the glass door are portraits of the Led Zeppelin band members painted by Houston artist Tra’ Slaughter. “The paintings are so perfect in that room,” Dodson says. “You walk in and it’s like, whoa! They look alive.” Hanging on the opposite wall are two more Slaughter paintings—oversize renderings of The Beatles’ “Abbey Road” and Pink Floyd’s “The Dark Side of the Moon” album covers.

Paintings of 1970s-era Led Zeppelin top the glass wall that opens to the wine room.

The staircase wall is also decked out with rock-inspired art—painted portraits of The Beatles that Jim found at a street market in Europe. Dodson artfully blended the funky with the formal in the foyer, hanging a crystal chandelier above the winding staircase.

A butler’s pantry across the foyer from the music room leads to the combination kitchen and great room that spans one side of the house. Dodson covered furnishings there with durable and stain-resistant, indoor-outdoor fabrics so Jim and his girls can use the room without worrying about spills.

Swiveling bar stools at the kitchen island are wrapped in vinyl that can be wiped clean and are accented with nailheads for a tailored style befitting the homeowner. Graphic encaustic tiles in blue and taupe shades span the range wall, creating a stunning focal point and showcasing Jim’s high-performance cooking appliances.

Dodson accented rooms throughout with blue—one of Jim’s favorite colors. The hue is repeated on rugs, Greek key trims on draperies, lamp bases, and art. One of Dodson’s favorite finds? A blue pillow embellished with a smiling skull wearing headphones. “Too perfect,” she says. That, of course, landed in the music room.

The “Cane” rug in Desert Night is from Stark. For a touch of Texas, the Vieux Interiors bench is covered in cowhide. An abstract painting by Tra’ Slaughter and orange antique Fortuny pillows add pops of color.